Apple’s New CEO Personally Takes Control of Product Design

Following a leadership change at Apple, the company has also made a major change in its approach to product design. New CEO John Ternus has personally taken control of design, one of the company’s most important areas.

According to Bloomberg journalist Mark Gurman, Ternus now regularly works directly from Apple’s design studio. He visits the studio several times a week and, on some days, returns several times. This approach differs significantly from that of his predecessor, Tim Cook. Cook typically visited the studio no more than once a month to meet with designers and spent about an hour there.

To allow Ternus to devote more time to design, the company has reportedly also assigned financial and supply chain matters to other executives. Chief Financial Officer Kevan Parekh and Chief Operating Officer Sabih Khan will oversee these areas.

Interestingly, no single person officially leads all design operations at Apple. Molly Anderson is responsible for industrial design, while Steve Lemay oversees user interfaces. Nevertheless, after Jeff Williams left the company in 2025, Apple’s designers had already begun reporting to Ternus. Now, he has effectively also assumed the role of head of all design operations at the company.

This approach recalls a familiar model from Apple’s history. Several years ago, Jony Ive directly oversaw the company’s design policy. Ternus’s close involvement in design suggests that Apple’s leadership may have more influence than before over the appearance and user experience of its future products.